


Wizmas 2019

by YourTrueNemesis



Series: Wizard101: The Soulshard Saga [2]
Category: Wizard101
Genre: Also yeah I'm still on Celestia what're you gonna do about it I'm busy!!, Angst, Based on the video game, Christmas Fluff, Families of Choice, Fluff, Found Family, Lots of personal headcannons, Prompt? Fill, Wizmas 2019, maybe? - Freeform, probably not this is much nicer than October's
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-13
Updated: 2019-12-26
Packaged: 2021-02-26 04:22:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 11,714
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21787462
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/YourTrueNemesis/pseuds/YourTrueNemesis
Series: Wizard101: The Soulshard Saga [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1570126
Comments: 1
Kudos: 4





	1. Chapter 1

Snow blanketed the Commons, fat flakes drifting on slow winds. No matter how slushy or trampled the snow became over the course of the day, it was always fresh by the time the students had woken up. It had been snowing in the Commons for weeks, and in the month leading up to Christmas, every street in Wizard City had grown colder. Colossus Boulevard--newly reopened to the students after Ryan saved the Spiral--was unbearable, and even the normally sweltering Firecat Alley was chilly. The bare trees that littered the edges of the Commons seemed to be coated in crystal, refracting the tiny pinpricks of light that shone from the floating candles that hovered amid the bare branches. Pine trees hung with garlands had been erected by the frozen fountain, and wreaths marked every door in the Shopping District.

Only Haunted Cave remained untouched by the holiday spirit…

Well, mostly untouched. The fog still swirled along the sidewalks, and field guards still lit the cave with flickering orange light, but the necromancers that spent their days in the cave had done their best to decorate their classroom in the holiday spirit. Lights had been strung over the eaves of the building, but the most dramatic changes had occurred inside. The large empty space on the first floor had a rather sad looking tree sitting in the middle of it. It was small, and somewhat brown and wilted (it had been a full two weeks since Ryan had dragged it there from Grizzleheim), but was lavishly decorated with small paper ornaments, floating candles, and hanging candies. Small bundles of holly berries (pilfered from Valerian’s potion set) had been scattered around the room, and a bunch of mistletoe hung above the staircase. A knitted hat had been pulled snuggly over the skull of the class skeleton, and Bones’ bed was surrounded by ripped up tinsel that the cat had stolen while the students were decorating the tree.

The second story loft had accrued a large pile of gifts over the month wrapped in brightly colored papers, which lay, clustered like berries, around the base of Ryan’s rarely slept in bed.

The necromancers had been expecting a full classroom for Christmas, but as the group slowly arrived, they began to realize that they’d been expecting too much. Of course Ryan couldn’t make it. They’d been galavanting across the Spiral almost all month, and last they’d heard, was in Celestia. The young wizard was doing much better since their classmates had intervened. They now set their own schedule, and showed up to their classes more often than not. They did still have their hero complex though, and every once in a while they’d disappear for a few weeks, and come back exhausted from helping some far off land.

Ryan hadn’t promised that they’d be home for Christmas, but the students had hoped. Despite Ryan’s absence, the mood was jovial, and the death students laughed and chattered into their mugs of steaming cider and cocoa. Most other students had chosen to stay in the dorms on their holiday, but every one of the necromancers had shown up to the classroom on Christmas Eve, and spent the night there together.

They mowed their way through the presents easily, throwing wrapping paper at once another as Elijah struggled to make some sense out of the piles of ripped paper. It was nearing mid morning when they realized that their once plentiful pile of presents had dwindled to two small stacks. Those for Ryan, and those from Ryan.

No one moved to take a present, and they sat in tense silence for a few breaths before Sarai moved. She leaned forward, and plucked the small red box with her name from the pile. She shifted back into her seat on Alexandria’s lap, and pulled the note off the top from where it had been fastened beneath the ribbons. She cleared her throat, and read it aloud.

“You’re always complaining about the shitty food in the dining hall, so I thought I’d get you these. Tell me which one you don’t like and I’ll replace them later with the ones you do!”

* * *

_Krokotpia seemed to be unaffected by the Winter that had infected Wizard City, and Ryan was glad for the change, even though they weren’t prepared for the heat. In the short time that they’d been there, they’d already sunburnt their nose, and the skin there peeled away as they scratched it. They ducked quickly into a white plaster building, and sheltered in the shade._

_“Excuse me?” They asked, trying to get the Mander’s attention, “Do you sell food here?” The vendor looked up sharply and smiled,_

_“Ah! Young wizard, welcome to my shop. I am Sa’eed. What can I get for you today?” Ryan worried at their lip, and glanced over the displays of brightly colored fruits and vegetables. The whole room smelled spiced, and as they leaned particularly close to a wrinkled red pepper, they felt their eyes begin to well up with painful tears._

_“Um… I’m looking for a present for my friend and I’m not sure what they’d like. Could I maybe get a selection?”_

_“Of course!” The mander began to busy himself behind the counter, and pulled out a box. He began to fill it with what seemed to be his own favorite snacks. Ryan saw him pack star fruit, dry looking crackers, and dehydrated salted fish into the box. As the box filled up slowly with peppers and crumbling date pastries, Ryan fished in their pockets for the required gold. The shopkeep handed over the box, and took the gold, blessing Ryan for their patronage as they once again returned to the sweltering heat outside. They scratched again at the flaking skin of their nose, and pulled a small list from a pouch on the side of their backpack. One more present found._

* * *

Sarai popped a date pastry into her mouth and hummed in pleasure at the taste. Alexandria’s hand snaked around, attempting to grab one herself, but Sarai slapped it away from her bounty.  
“Sorry babe, these are way too good to share.”


	2. Chapter 2

After Sarai broke the ice by opening her first present from Ryan, the rest of the gifts were quickly passed around the circle, until every person had a gift in front of them.

“Um… guess I’ll go next then!” Flint said. His gift was long and cylindrical, and one of the heaviest of the bunch. It bent slightly in the middle as he flipped it over to get at the card. He broke the seal of the tape and cleared his throat, reading aloud. “Rematch?”

* * *

_Ryan tucked the box of food into their backpack, struggling to close the zipper around the abundance of stuff crammed into the bag. Once secured, they checked back at the list. They could pick up at least one more item in Krokotopia, but it wouldn’t be as easy as the first item had been. They made their way across the connected islands, and walked up to the ferry dock. Captain Salalabad jumped respectfully aside as they approached, and ushered them onto the boat._

_They dropped their pack before walking to stand at the bow of the airship, enjoying the feeling of the wind tickling the sides of their hair that weren’t covered by a hat. The oars squeaked in rhythmic repetition as they magically propelled the ship through the air. The rides on the ferry were always short, but Ryan was able to relax, if only for a few seconds. They leaned further towards the front of the boat until almost their entire torso was hanging over the bow. They let out a bright laugh into the hot wind, and an answering chuckle sounded from behind them._

_“Be careful young wizard, we don’t want you falling do we.”_

_“I’ll be fine Captain!” Ryan answered without turning their head back. They stretched out even farther, one leg losing contact with the sealed planks of the deck. Ryan stretched out their fingers in front of them, elongating their entire body before stepping back from the bow. They moved to the side of the boat, removing their hat, and kneeling down at the edge of the boat between two of the oars. They rested their forehead against the rail on the edge, inhaling the scent of resin. The wind tossed around the sweaty hair on top of their head, cooling Ryan down immediately._

_The Captain let Ryan sit there for the remainder of the flight--it was a fairly common occurrence--and cleared his throat once the boat had docked at the krokosphinx. Ryan stood up, replaced their hat, and exited the boat. They almost made it entirely off the dock before Captain Salalabad yelled,_

_“Wait! Young wizard! You forgot your bag!” Ryan cursed and jogged back to the ship, taking the proffered bag with a grateful smile. They jogged down the short pier, and felt the shift of the terrain from wood to sand beneath their boots. They strolled across the island, sand slipping from beneath every step as they moved towards the krokosphinx. At the base of the enormous statue was a pit to a tunnel deep within the island._

_“Young wizard!” A reedy voice called, “How grand to see you again, have you come to learn more of my secrets?” Ryan broke out into a broad grin,_

_“Niles! Great to see you too. I’m actually hear to grab a gift for my friend from the balance classroom… is Alhazred in?” The palm leaves of the wide tree drooped,_

_“Not at the moment no.”_

_“Perfect… not sure he’d actually let me take one anyway.”_

_“Take one? Take one of what!” Ryan smirked and began to descend the ladder, “Young wizard! Don’t you dare walk away from me!” Ryan giggled as they descended deeper into the sand, the concerned shouts of the tree becoming ever more muffled._

_Alhazred’s classroom was a favorite place of many wizards of the spiral, but it was not one of Ryan’s. The air was always incredibly cold and strangely damp. And the instructor rarely allowed breaks. When they had first arrived and had been made to study the school of balance, they had dreaded coming down here._

_No windows, no fresh air, not even any decorations to distract them. The only redeeming part of the classroom was the seating._

_Unlike the cramped desks of Ravenwood, the sweeping auditoriums of Pigswick, and the squashed throw pillows of Malorn’s classroom, the balance classroom beneath the krokosphinx had small carpets that levitated off the ground. Ryan had spent many a boring lesson experimenting with the rugs, and they were wasted as seating. They were likely good enough to race with, and Ryan wasn’t about to let them all go to waste in an empty classroom._

_They quickly rolled up one of the vibrating rugs, and crammed it into the largest pouch of their backpack (Ryan’s backpack must have been magic for all of the stuff they managed to fit inside of it). They looked around once more for Alhazred before they scrambled back up the ladder to the disappointed glare of the palm tree. Ryan shrugged cheekily._

_“What did you take?”_

_“Nothing!” Niles raised one eyebrow, “Well… nothing important anyway.”_

_“Will Master Alzahred miss it?”_

_“I highly doubt it.”_

_“Then I suppose I can pretend I never saw you. I hope your friend enjoys their gift.” Ryan bounced off, happy with their petty theft._

* * *

Flint struggled to keep his balance on the rug, and completely toppled over, crushing Liam and Elijah beneath him. The carpet skidded across the floor, and out into space, coming to rest hovering several feet beyond the edge of the loft. He let out a hearty laugh and rolled off his friends


	3. Chapter 3

Iridium was eager to open her gift after seeing the fantastic presents Ryan had given their other friends, and tore at the shimmering silver paper.

“Hey hey, aren’t you gonna read us your note first?” Angel chided. Iridium paused, and shrugged sheepishly, before carefully plucking the note from the ripped up paper. She opened the seal, and recited the lines of carefully written--though unfathomably messy--script.

“Apparently she likes honeysickle. P.S. Her name is Audrey.”

* * *

_Ryan was glad to be back in Wysteria. The last time they’d been to Pigswick Academy had been… eventful to say the least, and they were glad of the excuse to stroll slowly down the curling tunnels and wide alleys. They brushed careful fingers along the rough stone wall, bits of skin scraping up. They stepped past a couple of students sleeping on their textbooks, and made their way towards Tanglewood way._

_Ryan forced their shoulder through a gap between two of the largest vines, and squeezed their way through the vegetation. The vines themselves were pulsing with life even after the banishment of their creator, and bulged slightly to prevent Ryan from progressing. They had made this journey many times before however, and were accustomed to using their knife to slash through the strangling vines. They stumbled out into the sunshine on the other side of the wall, one foot still caught in the vines. They snatched their foot away with a sharp tug and fell headlong into the dirt. Ryan cursed and started to stand, before they found their foot once again caught in the vegetation. They flipped onto their back and looked down their body, finding their foot caught in the jaws of a small… plant?_

_Was it a plant? It looked like a plant. But it had eyes. Eyes on plants weren’t exactly uncommon, but usually they were confined to greenhouses, or magically bred that way. It was rare--extremely rare--to find a plant like that out in the wild._

_“Let go!” Ryan whined, tugging their foot from it’s grasp, and feeling ridiculous for talking to a plant. They stood, and brushed off the dust from their knees. As they turned to leave, their shoelaces were caught in the venus fly trap’s mouth, and they huffed, swatting at the plant’s jaws to try to force it to let go. “Let go! I have to go pick flowers for Iridium!” The plant let go of Ryan, and allowed them go on their merry way._

_They stormed away from the entrance, struggling to keep their balance on the loose stones of the broken sidewalks. Ryan remembered picking flowers in Tanglewood way before, and had found some of the most beautiful ones deep within the treant infested street. A modified tempest spell might be enough to keep them fresh, although they’d have to summon some sprites in order to keep it healthy. But they could manage it and Iridium would have a vase of permanently fresh flowers to enjoy. Ryan clambered up the broken ramp, and stumbled down a covered hallway._

_At the end of the hall, they could see a shaft of light coming from a slab of stone broken by an errant vine. The light shone on a small patch of grass, in which a startlingly beautiful patch of flowers grew. Perfect. Each blossom was nearly as big as Ryan’s head, and was a vivid vermillion. The petals were each speckled with flecks of gold--real gold mind, not bright yellow--and seemed to practically glow. Ryan softly padded over to the flowers, and severed them from the body of the plant with quick knife strokes. They gathered half a dozen of the blossoms, before deciding that they had had enough, and quickly tied them together with a piece of twine they’d bought specifically for the purpose. They pulled out a tempest treasure card, and summoned the water around the cut stems of the flowers._

_Swirls of water gathered at the bright green shoots, and they pressed up into them, perking up the blooms ever so slightly. It was child’s play to cast a sprite and instruct it to tend to the flowers, and Ryan smiled at a job well done. They gently secured the flowers to the side of their backpack, and began to pick their way back to the entrance of Tanglewood way. They once again tried to force themself through the vines at the crack in the wall, but were stopped by a persistent pressure at their ankle. Ryan frowned, and turned to glare at the offending plant._

_“I’m serious. Let go of me.” The plant whined, and seemed to pout slightly._

_“What do you want from me!” Ryan asked, feeling stupid. The fly trap let go, and frantically gestured at the vine filled crack with one of its leaves. “Do you want out?” They asked. The plant nodded frantically. Apparently the plant could understand what they were saying… that was… new information. “You want me to take you with me?” The plant nodded vigorously, and Ryan knelt down by the sprout, and began to cautiously dig the plant up from the roots. It nipped at Ryan’s arms when their fingernails dug into the tender root system, impeding their progress. Ryan eventually dug it completely up though, and cradled the plant to their chest. “I suppose that Ridi might like to plant you in the classroom garden… you like honeysickle?” The plant yelped like a dog might, and Ryan let out a laugh. “I’ll take that as a yes then…” Ryan hummed in thought, “If you’re going to stay at the classroom then you’ll need a proper name… how’s Audrey sound?” The plant--Audrey--yelped again and Ryan pressed her closer to their chest and began to fight their way through the vine choked passage._

_They could hear a strange crunching sound as Audrey squirmed in their grasp, but they were too busy slashing their way through the vines to pay much attention to it. They once again found their way into piercing sunlight, and immediately looked down to check on Audrey. She was chewing up Ryan’s carefully collected flowers._

_“What did you do!? Those were for Iridium you hooligan!!” Audrey looked not at all ashamed of what she had done._

* * *

Iridium had placed Audrey’s pot in her lap, and was tickling the bottom of her chin with two fingers, and cooing at her.

“Who’s my sweet little venus fly trap… you are! You are!”


	4. Chapter 4

Marcus’ gift lay heavy in his hands, wrapping paper crinkled and torn at the end, the tip of something sharp and bronze poking through the packaging. He broke the seal on the letter with calloused fingers, and cleared his throat, voice cutting through the fond chatter that filled the room.

“This should keep you pretty sharp. Please excuse the awful pun.”

* * *

Ryan was back in Aquila, back in the land of gods and clouds. They breathed deeply, inhaling the scent of clover and metal, and nodded in passing to the people milling about the garden of Hesperides, and once again began the long arduous climb up the marble stairs. It was no easier than the first time they had taken the journey, and they frequently stopped to catch their breath, choosing to sit on the stairs rather than lean on the railing (there had been a disaster during the second time they’d climbed up the mountain and they hadn’t trusted the safety rail since). The view was astonishing though, and it almost made up for the hazardously thin air. Swirls of clouds separated the floating islands from the rest of wizard city, edged with rainbows of light reflected in the water droplets. The sky was always clearest blue or deepest black, and at night, the constellations seemed to gamble about as if they were alive.

Small sprouts struggled to survive in the thin atmosphere of Mount Olympus, clinging to the smooth stairs and offering Ryan a modicum of traction on the mirror polished stone. It was nearly an hour before Ryan reached the gates of Olympus. They blew the golden gates apart with a quick bit of showy magic, and greeted the Owl headed goddess guarding them with a deep bow.

“Young wizard, you have already defeated our challenges and secured the title of Honorable Bronze Archon, what brings you back to Mount Olympus?”

“I’ve come to collect something that I won from Ares.” Athena laughed, and ushered Ryan forward with one wing,

“Then by all means, anything you can do to embarrass Ares is fine with me.”

“I’ll be sure to tell him you think so my lady.” Ryan stepped through the gates, and made their way into the lavish hallway, ignoring the side rooms they knew belonged to the twins Apollo and Artemis. They moved instead to the door at the end of the hall, opening it to find a large humanoid hawk seated on a throne. He was polishing an enormous bronze spear, sending off sprays of sparks as he scraped it to a stingingly sharp point. He looked up ever so slightly, raised one eyebrow, and huffed out a harsh laugh.

“You dare show your face here young wizard?” The way he said Ryan’s honorary title sounded more like a curse than an honorific, and it amused Ryan to no end. They stepped forward and spread their arms wide in a ‘come at me’ gesture.

“I seem to recall that you owed me something Ares.” The god spat on the marble floor,

“I owe you nothing child.”

“I beat you on the battlefield Ares, and in return you promised me a reward should I ever come to collect it.” Ryan took several steps forward, “I have come to collect.” Ares looked up at Ryan, seeming to consider his options before he stood from his throne, and, in the most condescending way possible, he said,

“What is it that you will take from me then?”

“Your spear.” The god blanched,

“You dare take from me my symbol of power?” Ryan only stared back, one hand outstretched as if to receive the spear. “Insolent wizard!” He shouted, and cast the spear at his feet. As the weapon dropped, it shrank to a human size, and Ryan picked it up. They turned on their heel and strode from the hall.

“I look forward to battling you again someday Ares, I just hope that you will put up more of a fight.” Ares chuckled darkly in response, and without looking back, Ryan added, “Oh. And Athena says hello.”

* * *

Marcus tested out his new spear, slashing from his right shoulder down before twirling it back over his head, crossing his arms and slashing down in the opposite direction. The weapon was perfectly balanced, and channelled Marcus sloppy spellwork better than any wand ever had. He hefted it in one hand, and was about to throw it but Malorn put a hand on his arm, stopping him from launching the spear across the classroom. Marcus smiled sheepishly and put the spear down, resigning to test to spear’s aerodynamics outside.


	5. Chapter 5

“Come on Lijah’, your turn next.” Elijah chuckled and shook his head.

“No, you guys go ahead.” Despite his protestations, he kept casting glances towards his gift--a tastefully wrapped gift box with a perfect ribbon and a fancy calligraphy logo. He fingered the corner of the wrapping paper, flicking the thick decorative parchment.

“Just open it!” Angel called, and Elijah ducked his head and began to separate the note from the package with the utmost care.

“Um… it says: You have to promise not to use them all too quickly, I mean I can always get more, but please try not to write too many notes. I'm begging you take a break.”

* * *

_The bell on the glass door chimed, announcing Ryan’s entrance to the small shop located in an alley off Reagent’s square. They rubbed their hands together as they entered, blowing warm air across their numb fingertips. The interior of the shop was warm and dry, and filled with buttery yellow light that cut through the fog that pressed against the windows like cotton wool. Marleybone was always at least a little foggy, and the shops in the main square catered to a damp public seeking shelter. Many had hearths or tea services available to entice damp and haggard patrons inside. It was certainly working, Ryan felt properly enticed._

_They wandered the wide floorboards of the shop for a minute, glad to bask in the comforting atmosphere of the room. They were acutely aware of the shopkeeper’s eyes on them as they ran contemplative fingers along the shelves of quills and carefully crafted displays of notebooks. When they had taken several laps around the room, and spent enough time enjoying the silence and relative privacy of the shop, they sauntered up to the counter._

_“Hi! Um… I’m looking for some stationary for my friend for Christmas and I thought maybe you could help me find something?”_

_“Of course young wizard.” The beagle behind the counter spoke, “What type of stationary are you looking for?” Ryan scratched the back of their neck and let out a long breath._

_“Well uh… He takes a lot of notes and fills out a lot of note cards.”_

_“Note cards?”_

_“Like, index cards. He takes a lot of notes for speeches and does a lot of underlining of a lot of notes. He keeps ripping through his paper, so maybe some nicer thick paper?” The shopkeep seemed to contemplate for a second before leading Ryan to a display on a low shelf. He picked up a pack of parchment, and handed it to Ryan. It was heavier than they expected, and it had a pleasant texture to it. The shopkeep kept handing things to Ryan; a pack of index cards made of the same parchment as the rest of the paper, a set of four quills fashioned from glossy brown feathers, and a pot of deepest black ink that seemed to swirl on its own._

_“Will these suffice?” The shopkeep asked, and Ryan responded with a wide toothy grin,_

_“Yeah, these are perfect! Elijah’s gonna love them. But do you have any colored ink?” The beagle smiled indulgently, and handed Ryan a long case full of tiny pots of different colored inks in all shades. There was everything from blood red, to royal blue, to metallic gold. It even included one color of ink that shimmered like an oil slick. Ryan’s stomach flipped as they looked at it and their breath caught in their suddenly dry throat. Something buzzed in their ears and they shook their head to clear any vestiges of out of control magic._   
_They’d been taking it easier ever since… well they’d been taking it easier. They still went out adventuring, and they still saved the denizens of the spiral wherever they could, but they also made time for classes, and extracurriculars and spending time with their friends. They hadn’t been stretching their magic… not on a daily basis at least, and while they still summoned power pips, they always made sure to spend time bandaging their cuts after battles. They were doing much better! And when they weren’t they talked to their friends about it instead of avoiding them. Ryan pointed a shaking finger at the ink that reminded them uncannily of the magic that they so often used to drown in._

_“Is… is there any way you could replace this one with a different color?” The shopkeep cocked his head but nodded, and quickly switched out the offending ink for one that was such a bright yellow that it hurt Ryan’s eyes. “Thank you so much. Could you wrap this for me?”_

_“Of course.” The shopkeeper moved back behind the counter and began to gift wrap their presents with a practiced hand. Even the paper he used was of a higher quality then Ryan had been expecting--beige with slightly paler pinstripes and tiny designs of holly berries. The beagle tied a pristine red ribbon across the top of the package and stamped the corner with the logo of the shop. He then handed the package over to Ryan in exchange for their gold. He gave a parting word of thanks as Ryan stepped out of the shop and into the cold._

* * *

Elijah inhaled deeply, face pressed against the paper. There was nothing in the world he enjoyed more than the smell of fresh paper, and Ryan had been good enough to give some to him. He had ever so carefully removed the wrapping paper so that not an edge was torn, and he’d managed to take off the bow in one piece (it was now hung around Gabriel’s neck). He couldn’t wait to write with these.


	6. Chapter 6

Liam held his package, and flipped it over in his hands, instead of one package like most of the other gifts, Liam’s present was comprised of over a dozen tiny individually wrapped items attached to a folder that had been tied shut with red ribbon. The note from Ryan was only barely poking out from the center of the tumor-like pile of gifts, and Liam had to break the gift apart in order to open it. He caught a glimpse of soft looking leather as he reached for the note, but resisted the temptation to open his present immediately.

“You were always better at this than I was, I’ll grab some from Mooshu next year. Enjoy!”

* * *

_Ryan clutched their gift wrapped package tightly to their chest, and shrugged deeper into their armor. The celestian shell armor was entirely unsuitable for the weather in marleybone, and Ryan desperately wished that they’d had the foresight to bring their old overcoat. They squinted through the fog, scanning the plaza until they saw the woman they were looking for._

_“Miss Worthington!” They called as they sped across the dew slick stones towards her. She turned to face them, a smile lighting her face with joy when she recognized them._

_“Ryan, how many times must I tell you to call me Felicia?”_

_“At least one more time Miss Worthington.” Ryan had missed her company. She had been one of the first people they had talked to when they found themself in Marleybone, and she had helped them in their crafting studies. Ryan had given up the study of crafting not too long after their lessons with Felicia, but she had never begrudges them for it, and often tried to convince them to stop by for tea when Ryan found themself in Marleybone._

_“What brings you back to Marleybone Young Wizard? Last I heard you were gallivanting around Celestia.”_

_“I wouldn’t say gallivanting, but actually I’m back to collect some gifts for my friends.” They lifted the package in their arms for her to see and Felicia nodded in understanding._

_“What are you looking for?”_

_“Well… my friend Liam is into crafting--more than I ever was--and I thought I should get him some patterns and materials! I’ve already collected more than enough materials by just wandering around, but I need some patterns. I figured you might know where to find some good ones?” Felicia gave a dramatic gasp, and feigned offense,_

_“Are my patterns not enough?” Ryan laughed,_

_“Well I’ve already leant him all of the ones I got from you… I figured he should get some new ones.” Felicia hummed in thought,_

_“I do have a friend who might be able to help you actually… Darcy Holdstock? She spends most of her time on the Scotland Yard roof, you’ll probably find her there.”_

_“Thanks so much!” Ryan said, already walking away._

_“You’d better come back for tea Ryan Soulshard!”_

_“Of course! It’s a date!” They left Felicia and turned onto a side street, and began to make their way towards Scotland Yard. Groups of dogs stood chatting on the sidewalks, taking turns about the foggy square. Small steam powered automobiles trundled along the cobbles, adding noise to the cold, grey afternoon. As Scotland Yard came into view, Ryan found themself tripping. They managed to stay on their feet, and turned to look at the item that had nearly knocked them to the ground. It was a twisted scrap of metal, and could easily be hammered into something nice. They picked up the scrap metal and shoved it into a side pocket of their nearly infinite backpack._

_They stepped over the threshold of Scotland Yard, and were immediatley greeted with a cry of,_

_“Soulshard! Good to see you, good to see you again.”_

_“Hello Officer McRuff! How’s the rat problem.”_

_“Better now, they’ve been keeping to themselves mostly.”_

_“Glad to hear it. Mind if I head up to the roof?”_

_“Not a problem, go on ahead young wizard.” Ryan gave a jaunty salute before moving to the ladder._

_The roof of Scotland Yard wasn’t as well kept as some of the other roofs of Marleybone, but it was less infested as even the most brazen of thugs didn’t want to risk mugging someone on the roof of the police station. Ryan picked their way over a small plywood bridge and into a corner that was relatively sheltered from the fog._

_“Excuse me,” Ryan called, “Are you Miss Holdstock?”_

_“Yes,” said the schnauzer, “why?”_

_“Oh yeah, sorry. Miss Worthington sent me in search of some crafting patterns.” Miss Holdstock’s face brightened, and she seemed flustered as she spoke._

_“Felicity sent you? Well of course, what are you looking for?”_

_“Everything.” Ryan said and Miss Holdstock laughed,_

_“I think I can help with that.”_

* * *

Liam flipped through the thin pages of meticulous crafting patterns, and absently began to toy with a piece of canvas, already imagining what he could make with it.


	7. Chapter 7

Roslyn shivered in the damp chill that always seemed to permeate the walls of the death classroom. Even the warm laughter that echoed throughout the room wasn’t enough to keep her warm. She shrugged the crocheted blanket tighter over her shoulders, and pressed her head down into the collar of her robes.

“Go ahead Ros.”

“S-sure” Her teeth were chattering. She was not a woman built for the cold. Her present though was large and gave slightly when she pressed into the crinkled blue paper. The card was tied to the package with a length of rough twine, and when she opened the note, a small pressed flower slid out. “Hope this will come in handy for at least another few months. Although, knowing your constitution, you’ll probably use it year round.”

* * *

_Grizzleheim was a welcome change from the last few world's Ryan had been travelling in. It was a bit brisk but they could manage the weather. They were supposed to be meeting Baldur by the gates to the fort, but it had been nearly an hour and the merchant still hadn’t shown up. Ryan had long since sat down in the dew covered grass, and had amassed quite a collection of flower crowns which they were now draping themself with. They’d even managed a half decent set of flower earrings with loops made from springy green grass. They were now fully bedecked with floral jewelry bruised from their too short fingernails, and were slowly pulling the chains or vegetation apart. Torn petals were piled in their lap, pollen staining the pads of their fingers._

_Ryan plucked one of their makeshift earrings off, and separated the grass loop from the blossom. They were about to pull this flower apart as well, but took a moment to examine it. It was small, with five delicate pink petals and thin as tissue paper, and half a dozen small, pollen covered stamen clustered at the center. The base of the stem was dark from the liquid that had welled up when Ryan cut it from the rest of the stem. It was lovely. Too lovely to tear apart really. Ryan hummed in though before turning to their backpack, unzipping it and pulling out an old overdue library book. They winced. Ryan really had to learn to return their books. They opened the cover and Ryan couldn’t help but let out a chuckle when they realized that the return date was nearly three months ago. Maybe they’d just ignore it and hope for the best._

_They flipped farther into the book and carefully laid the flower near the center seam of the pages. They shut the book tightly, and returned it to the unfathomable depths of their bag._

_“Excuse me?” A gravelly voice spoke from behind Ryan. They turned, and saw one of the merchants they recognized from town. “You’re the one waiting for Baldur right?”_

_“Yeah… yeah that’s me.” Ryan scrambled to their feet, shreds of grass and ripped petals tumbling to the ground. Even after they had stood to their full height, they still needed to crane their neck to make eye contact with the bear. Ryan’s meager height of five foot three was hardly a match for the towering seven feet of the citizens of Grizzleheim._

_“Mr. Goldpaws wanted me to give you this message.” The bear handed Ryan a piece of rough paper, with runes scrawled across it. Ryan squinted down at the unrecognizable language for a few seconds before admitting,_

_“I… I don’t know what this says.”_

_“Oh!” The merchant laughed, “Of course I should have known, I can translate for you.” He took the paper back from Ryan, “He says that he is sorry for missing your meeting but he was detained by business in Wizard city. He left your package by the rainbow bridge.”_

_“Thanks!” Ryan said, giving a respectful nod to the mechant before walking briskly towards the spiral gate. They hoped that the package wasn’t missing or damaged, it was awfully inconvenient._

_Crossing the rainbow bridge was always unsettling. The magic light that the bridge was made of bent slightly beneath their weight, and it always seemed to Ryan that they were moments from falling through._

_The spiral gate was a heavy wooden door set in a rough stone frame. Moss climbed up the base of the door as if trying to reclaim it.. The lock was almost rusted shut, and fitted to the wooden key etched with runes and inlaid with a thick piece of green glass. Ryan looked around the door, and smiled. The package was wrapped a little clumsily in brown paper, and tied with twine. They picked up the gift, and unwrapped the waxy paper. They pulled the heavy fabric from its wrappings and giddily clutched it to their chest._

_It was a long chestnut leather duster, lined with soft tawny fur. The cuffs were thick with fur and a wide scooping hood dropped prettily from the shoulders. Ryan almost wanted to keep it for themself. It was exquisite. And Roslyn was going to love it._

* * *

Roslyn snuggled deeper into the soft folds of her new coat, and pulled the hood over her head so far that she couldn’t see. Downy hairs tickled at her nose and mouth, catching as she breathed.

“You think I can borrow it sometime?” Flint murmured, his cold hands snaking to the cozy interior of her coat. Roslyn squirmed when his cold fingers brushed against her sides.

“Maybe…”


	8. Chapter 8

Alexandria had been avoiding her present. It was--like so many other of Ryan’s gifts--somewhat shittily wrapped with a note attached to the top. However, unlike Ryan’s other gifts, it radiated heat that burned her fingers when she tried to remove the paper. She plucked the note from the top of the rounded package and blew on her burned fingertips. The paper itself seemed slightly scorched, and smelled of ash.

“Took awhile to get it just right, but I can’t think of a better place for it than with you. Hopefully Bones won’t hate it.”

* * *

The cave behind the waterfall was normally abandoned, but Ryan had been told to meet there. The next gift they were looking for wasn’t exactly legal…

It was mostly legal. Legal enough.

Ryan wasn’t going to bother themself about it.

The point was that Alexandria’s gift was going to be hard to come by and Ryan had to meet behind the waterfall. The atmosphere of the space behind the curtain of water was familiar. The cool spray of the water had gilded the floor and made to slick. Ryan pressed themself against the cool earthen wall, and began to tap their foot, waiting for their contact to show up.

Drops of water plinked to the smooth stone floor, echoing around the time worn chamber. They shivered, and began to dig in their backpack for something that might be able to keep them warm. Nothing. Ryan pursed their lips in contemplation before finally deciding that they would rather not freeze to death. They pulled out Roslyn’s coat and wrapped it around themself, immediately relaxing into the soft fur.

“Ah, there you are.” Ryan’s head snapped up and they saw a hunched raven entering the cave. She had clearly just waded across the river as her robes were wet up to the waist, and she was holding a wicker basket tightly to her chest, cradling it as though it were an infant.

“Oh hi! Yes. Is that…” Ryan trailed off. They probably shouldn’t say it out loud just in case this wasn’t his contact.

“Why yes it is. Took ages to get a viable breeding pair but I managed to get another egg.” The raven set her basket on the ground and opened the top. She pulled out a linen wrapped object, and peeled back the draped fabric to reveal an egg unlike any Ryan had ever seen.

It was black but it seemed to shine even in the dim lighting of the cave. Ryan took a few steps forward and looked closer at it. They could see that the shell was dimpled, and seemed to have a slight orange cast up close. The raven held out the egg, nodding at them to take it when they hesitated. It was heavy and Ryan needed both hands to keep a hold of it. The egg was pleasantly warm to the touch, and Ryan pressed their cheek to the skin of the egg. Something in the egg seemed to purr at the human touch, and Ryan grinned.

“And this is…”

“A shadow phoenix.” She fished in one of her pockets (luckily this one was dry) and pulled out a slip of paper with instructions written in a shaky hand. “Here is the care guide.”

“Thanks very much. I’m sorry for the trouble.” And it was indeed trouble that they had found. All new hybrid pets had to be registered in wizard city, and certain types were deemed too dangerous to put into public circulation. Not everyone agreed with these standards however, which is why Ryan had been able to find a breeder willing to breed a shadow phoenix for them. Ryan took the slip of paper with two fingers, unwilling to loosen their grip on the egg. They shrugged off their backpack and placed the egg into the largest pouch where a cavity just big enough to fit it had suddenly appeared. Ryan then tucked the note inside the fabric that wrapped the egg and straightened up, intending to pay the woman for her trouble. But when they looked up, she was gone. Ryan saw traces of her aura as if she had teleported away or turned invisible but decided not to chase after her. If she wanted to give them the egg without payment, they wouldn’t refuse.

* * *

“Shadow phoenix care instructions: Nocturnal, requires nightly hunting expeditions, has a fondness for desserts. Do not store egg in a flammable place as it will catch on fire shortly before hatching.” Alexandria blinked several times. It certainly wasn’t what she had been expecting as a gift from Ryan but it was lovely nonetheless. She looked up to see Bones laying on Ryan’s currently abandoned pillow, her tail twitching as she looked intently at the egg.


	9. Chapter 9

Gabriel had already peeked at his present. The folder was only loosely tied with ribbon, and he could see that it was full of loose papers, with writing scrawled across them in a practiced hand. Gabriel squinted down at the note attached to the folder, and struggled to decipher Ryan’s chicken scratch (so clearly the notes inside the folder had not been written by Ryan themself).

“I wish I could take you to come in person--maybe someday I suppose--but these should help you in your dueling class for now.”

* * *

_Ryan shuddered as they stepped through the heavy metal door into the basilica. Hot air rushed down their throat and they immediately began to hyperventilate at the acrid smell. They quickly calmed their breathing down, thumbs beginning to twitch as their anxiety found another outlet. Dragonspyre was better now. Safer. Ryan had done this. They tried to feel proud but only felt sick when they remembered the finer details of the last time they’d set foot in Dragonspyre. They coughed, throat already painful from the sour air, and took a resolute breath. They would be fine. All they had to do was pick up a few gifts and then they could leave._

_As they walked through the hauntingly familiar streets and passages of Dragonspyre, they began to notice little changes. Green sprouts were shooting up from what had previously been arid patches of rock, busted windows had been replaced with fresh sheets of glass, and wizards and ghosts alike were moving about, casting small spells._

_Magic had returned to the once broken city of Dragonspyre._

_The most dramatic change of all was in the school. What had once been piles of rubble and slag had been cleared, and small groups of students were sitting by their respective classrooms, practicing foreign wand movements and unfamiliar spells. Ryan approached, strangely giddy at the prospect of the city returning to life. They quietly strode through the students invisible for the most part. At least until one of the theurgists suddenly realized exactly who they were and whispered it to a friend. Ryan could see the revelation pulse around the crowd, and felt their heart sink slightly. So much for remaining unnoticed. Ryan nodded their head at one of the younger necromancers and felt instantly better at the awed smile on her face. She eagerly saluted them, and the rest of the students followed her lead, snapping to military attention. Ryan couldn’t help but let out a bubbling little laugh as the remaining tension at returning to Dragonspyre eroded._

_Ryan slipped through a set of double doors and began to work through the more secluded alleys and plazas. It was clear that less work had been done to restore these sections to their former glory. After their interaction with the students, even the scenes of former battles had little effect on Ryan’s good mood. They hardly flinched when they saw some of the reformed ghosts they’d defeated long ago. The lava had almost completely dried up, but small streams of molten rock still lingered in the trenches and riverbeds. They were probably midway through the process of being drained and refilled with water, but until the last of the lava had been expelled, Ryan and the rest of Dragonspyre would have to live with the still smoky air._

_Ryan was once again outside a familiar tower, still as decrepit as the first day they’d visited. They cracked open the door and called,_

_“Madam Flamewing? Ma’am are you still here?”_

_“Young wizard, I never thought I’d find you in my tower. I would love to talk with you but as you can see I’m very busy.” Ryan stepped inside to find a small cluster of students clad in identical uniforms seated in a semicircle at Mavra Flamewing’s feet. Ryan winced and ducked their head._

_“Oh… sorry to interrupt, I can--”_

_“No. Stay.” She turned to address her class, “Class, this is Soulshard, you may have heard of them.” The students tittered at her blaze introduction of the savior of the spiral, “They were the only wizard to have beaten me in battle and do you know why?” None of the students said anything, content to stare at the intruding wizard in astonishment. “Because Soulshard knows how to properly use traps and blades. Show me your deck Ryan.”_

_“What?” Ryan squeaked, Mavra merely held out a hand in anticipation, beckoning for them to hand over their spell cards. Ryan fumbled for their deck box and handed it over. Mavra opened it quickly, and began to rifle through Ryan’s spells cards, humming at their choice of magic._

_“Death trap, curse, feint, death blade, spirit blade. Soulshard here has stacked their deck with traps and blades because they are a good wizard.” They replace the cards and handed back the deck box. “Thank you for helping me prove my point. Now what may I help you with?”_

_“Um…” Ryan scrambled to put their deck box back in their bag, “I was just wondering if you could write down some of your lessons? And if you could convince mister Spearcaller to write down some of his as well, I’d appreciate it.”_

_“At least someone cares about my lesson plans. I would be happy to provide, but first, would you care to give my class a practical demonstration? You owe me a rematch anyway.”_

_“I’d be happy to.”_

* * *

Gabriel eagerly read over the pages and pages of notes, pausing only to pour over a diagram illustrating a concept written in the text.

“What is it?” Valerian asked, spooking Gabriel out of his reverie.

“Hm? Oh… Ryan got me some dueling lessons written by this woman in Dragonspyre. Apparently she’s this ridiculous expert in traps and blades. There’s also some from the Dragonspyre shield expert too…” Valerian began to read over Gabriel’s shoulder.

“Wow this is really intense. You understand this?”

“I mean… not yet, but I’m sure Ryan can explain it.”


	10. Chapter 10

The necromancers who’d already unwrapped their gifts were bubbling joyously, and enjoying their boxes of sweets or pages of notes. Valerian was itching to open the small trunk that his gift was packed it. He already had a good idea of what it might be--some of the potion ingredients he used had very distinct smells after all, and honestly, what else would Ryan give him. Valerian untied the note from the latch of the crate and read aloud over the chorus of his friends.

“Refill.”

* * *

_Ryan stretched out across the nearly empty ditch, reaching to pick a blossom from its thick stem. They huffed when they found themself unable to reach and shifted back onto the slab of broken pavement that jutted into the small patch of lava. They expelled a lungful of smoke and wiped at their furiously sweating brow. They struggled to keep their limbs away from their torso to minimize the amount of sweat that soaked their robes. Finding lava lillies was certainly no picnic, but if they could just manage to pick this last one than they would finally have completed their latest gift. Ryan rolled over, grimacing at the large wet stain they left behind, and began to crawl further towards the edge of the slab. Carefully, they hooked one boot over the far lip of the stone, and edged forward. They reached their arm even farther forward and managed to snag one of the burnt orange petals between their fingers and pulled it forward._

_“Yes!” They hissed, but their moment of triumph was cut short by the sudden realization that they were holding onto the petals of a lava lily with their bare hand._

_“Fuck!” They yelped, and quickly reached for the athame they still kept at their belt._

_They grabbed it, flicked it forward with a practiced motion, and sliced through the thick, almost stone-like, stem of the flower. The blossom immediately tumbled down, and Ryan only just managed to save the flower from being lost in the remaining dregs of magma. They let out a long slow breath and shifted back onto their hands and knees, safely away from the lava._

_Ryan dropped the lily onto the stone and began to shake their hand wildly, attempting to stave off the pain of the blistering burn with a cool bust of air._   
_It wasn’t working all that well._

_The skin on their fingers was an angry red that was beginning to blister and bleed. Ryan held it away from their body and fumbled at their waist for the flask of healing draught. They took and quick gulp, drops of the periwinkle liquid spilling out over their fingers. Ryan dabbed the spilled potion at the nasty looking burn on their fingers and watched as the skin began to knit back together. Ryan corked the bottle with one hand and attached it once again to the loop on their belt._

_They opened the zipper on their backpack and pulled out their reagent pouch--overstuffed from the sheer number of ingredients. They opened the top of the pouch and shoved the lava lily inside. Ryan had never fully understood the magic behind their backpack or reagent pouch, but no matter what they shoved in, there was always exactly enough room for whatever they needed to store, and nothing ever got squished. Ryan would have to empty the sack before they gave the exotic reagents to Valerian, and they were certain that they’d need a larger package to contain all of the items properly._

_For now though, the pouch would have to do and Ryan packed away lava lily, careful not to burn themself on the burning petals of ember-like pollen._

* * *

“Refill? That’s it?”

“That’s all they really needed to say.” Valerian had already opened the crate and was fishing through the objects. “Ah!” Valerian immediately jumped back as his fingers brushed against something that burned.

“Val! What happened?” Gabriel asked,

“Hm? Nothing I just--” Valerian stuck his painful finger in his mouth and began to sift more carefully through the reagents until he found the source of the burn. “Is… is this a lava lily?” He held up the eight petaled blossom eagerly and broke into a grin. “How the hell did they find this?”


	11. Chapter 11

Angel’s gift was shaking ever so slightly and seemed to be trying to burst out of its package. They had kept the gift beneath their knee in order to prevent it from ripping open to paper that concealed it. When they finally removed their knee to open the gift it stopped moving, growing calm under their touch. They removed the note from the package, and coughed before reading.

“Devil of a time getting this one. Hopefully the enchantment has worn off by now but it may yell at you… If it gets too violent, rub some valerian (the root not the person) on it, that should remove the curse for a bit.”

* * *

_The library at Dragonspyre had clearly been fixed up with quite a bit of effort. The towering circular bookshelves that surrounded the main desk were dusted and sturdy. Books fluttered like strange birds between the bookcases, alighting on shelves organized by letter. It was resplendent even if it wasn’t quite what it must have been in the past. Ryan shivered. The library had always been unreasonably cold and continued to be so even after the refurbishment. Ryan walked up to the counter, confused to find the library empty. They knocked once on the counter._

_“Hello?” Ryan’s voice echoed in the empty library, their voice cutting through the fluttering papers and causing the books that were flying to stop. Ryan cringed in the sudden silence, and cleared their throat. “H-hello!? Milos?” Their voice cracked in the silence. “Milos are you--”_

_“Young wizard!” Ryan turned around to find Milos Bookwyrm waving at them from atop a ladder leaning on a high shelf “What a treat to see you back in the library!” He began to descend the ladder, and Ryan screwed up their face in horror as they saw the soles of Milos’ ghostly shoes slid into the rungs of the ladder slightly before they found purchase. Ryan didn’t fully understand the how spirits of Dragonspyre interact with the world, but they tried not to think too hard about it. Milos eventually made it safely to the ground, books cradled against his translucent chest. He set the stack down on the counter, and turned to greet Ryan with a friendly handshake, his fingers sinking slightly into Ryan’s. “What brings you here young Soulshard?”_

_“I’m actually looking for some presents for my friends and I thought I might come here to see if I can claim something from the Loremaster.”_

_“The Loremaster?” Milos’ eyebrows furrowed, and he crossed his ghostly arms._

_“You plan to fight the Loremaster?”_

_“I mean… I don’t see how hard she can be to defeat. I survived fighting…” They trailed off, allowing Milos to finish the thought. They didn’t want their good mood to be spoiled by talking about Malistaire._

_“Yes yes… I suppose you’re right. Tread carefully though. Lore doesn’t take kindly to book thieves.” Ryan gave a quick salute and trundled off to the Loremaster’s lair. They slipped inside and began to run careful fingers down the bookshelf, reading the titles as they went._

_A Practical Examination of Divination._

_History of the Dragon Titans._

_Marylebone Imperialism._

_Arcane Casting Methods._

_Ryan stopped. That last book was something that Angel might actually like. They pulled the book from the shelf as quietly as possible, but as soon as the tome left the shelf it opened wide like a mouth and began to shout in an echoing voice._

_“Who dares steal from my library!” Ryan slammed the book shut, struggling to keep the cover closed. Other books began to fly off the shelf, and began to call in unison: “Foul thief! Return what you have taken! Return what you have taken! Return!” The books started to sweep down, tossing Ryan around like a piece of driftwood on the ocean._

_“Hey! Stop!” They called. Too late Ryan realized that the books were pushing them towards a high ceilinged circular space where an ethereal woman hovered._

_“Thief!” She called, and the books began to echo her, their screechy voices overlapping until Ryan couldn’t distinguish the words. She raised one hand and sliced it through the air, stopping the chattering of the books. “Return my book to me wizard, and I will make your death a quick one.” Ryan shrugged, and shoved the now limp book into their backpack._

_“I’ll take a slow death I suppose, because I really need this book.” They began to summon a sigil, hands falling into innate patterns. The floor began to glow and the Loremaster’s look of shock caused Ryan to laugh aloud._

* * *

Angel stroked fingers down the book’s spine, and the quivering stopped. The tome seemed to like the attention it received, but Angel wasn’t sure how they’d distract it long enough to read through the whole thing. They actually weren’t sure where Ryan had managed to find a cursed book on forgotten methods of spellcasting but they were grateful for the gift. Malorn was already eyeing it from across the circle and Angel was sure that he’d ask to borrow it for a lesson plan.


	12. Chapter 12

Cori was perfectly content to lay on the floor with her head in Marcus’ lap and watch the rest of her friends open their own gifts. After being forced to put down his new spear, Marcus had been content to braid and rebraid her hair in a staggering number of styles, and the hair styling was making Cori sleepy. She closed her eyes and blocked out the world, happy to fall asleep.

“Ow!” She yelped. There was a sudden, sharp pain in her scalp and she sat up suddenly. “What the hell was that for?”

“Your turn Cor, you can’t sleep through the entire morning.”

“Can’t I?” She challenged, rubbing at the sloppy french braid Marcus had tugged on. He laughed and tossed her her present, and she deftly removed the note from the top of the sloppily wrapped box. “You and I can learn how to properly use these together… also sorry about the box, I was a little sleep deprived.”

* * *

_Ryan wiped the sweat off their brow and leaned back away from their crafting table in order to properly admire the deck box they’d spent the last four hours carving. It was heavy, made from a dark red, almost black, wood with crude etchings that they’d done themself covering ever surface. The lid of the box didn’t quite fit exactly right and the interior of the box was a little slanted, the corners not quite square. They hoped it would be big enough for a deck and quickly tested it, dropping their own spell deck in the homemade box. The spell cards fit well enough, even if the walls were rougher than those of a professionally made deck box. The hinges on the box didn’t quite align, and the lid remained more open on one side that the other, making the latch difficult to fully close. The box was unstained and unpainted and completely and utterly unprofessional looking._

_Cori was going to love it._

_Ryan brushed sawdust off of their palms and set the unreasonably tiny screwdriver in the top drawer of their crafting table. Ryan stretched and suppressed a mighty yawn. They’d snuck back into their old dorm room in Ravenwood in order to use the crafting bench, and to avoid running into any of the necromancers they were trying to avoid, they’d had to come in the middle of the night. Ryan was properly caffeinated, but no amount of caffeine could ever quite fill the void that developed after too long without sleep. It would have been much easier if Ryan was willing to come in the daylight. They could have used the fully stocked workbench in the necromancy classroom and sought help from Liam on which type of sandpaper to use. But of course, that would have ruined the surprise. Ryan was willing to suffer through a sleepless night in their all but abandoned dorm room if it meant they could keep up their ruse._

_The deck box was done, but Ryan wasn’t quite satisfied with the gift. Sure. Cori would love it, but Ryan could do more. They removed their cards from the box and began to thumb through them, humming in thought. They stopped on a particular card from the school of sun._

_Now there was a thought._

_Ryan smiled and tucked the deck box into a space in their pack and stored their spell cards back in their own, purely utilitarian case. They strode to the door and cracked it open, peering out into the corridor to ensure that no one was wandering the halls. They slipped out of their dorm, wincing at the sharp sound of the lock clicking in the hush of the early morning dorm. They made their way as quickly as they could to the spiral gate in the center of the grandfather tree, and pulled out their newest key, snapping the lock open. They stepped inside the portal, and found themself stepping out into another location altogether._

_The refracted light that came through Celestia’s thick glass domes seemed to cast the whole world into a fantasy. Thick bronze rivets and grates lined the base of the domes, connecting sand to glass in a clumsy seal more than prone to leakage. Ryan ducked their head beneath their hat, hoping desperately that they wouldn’t be recognized by any of their contacts. This was just supposed to be a quick trip in and out. If Ryan got caught up in another favor they might not make it back to Wizard City in time for Christmas. They hurried through a cobbled together tunnel, and found themself in the main dome of the survey camp. They quickly made their way across the loose, still damp sand and ducked into the small pit that had been dug to keep the spell trainers in. Ryan quickly made their way to the spinning sets of rings and began to bargain with them._

_Bargaining with the spell trainers was always a strange experience. They never really talked, but Ryan was given clear feelings that they had to respond to in kind. The conversation with the spell trainers was more like a several minute staring contest with added existentialism, but Ryan had thus far managed to befriend(?) the magical motes. They seemed particularly pleased today by Ryan’s rushed flashes of feelings, and were more than happy to summon the piles of treasure cards that Ryan had asked for._

_They turned away, ready to rush back to the spiral gate with their prize, but found themself running straight into a well dressed doberman pinscher._

_“Excuse me. You are the young wizard that I’ve heard so much about right?”_

_“Um… yeah I guess.” Ryan said, scratching the back of their neck and nervously looking around, “Sorry I’ve got to--”_

_“Excellent!” He said, completely cutting Ryan off. “I was wondering if you could do me a favor.”_

_“Well I’m just about to leave so--”_

_“Perfect! It does require a bit of travelling. I’m so sorry, I’ve forgotten to introduce myself. I’m Sir Ogden Peake. I’m researching here and I’ve heard that you are a fellow traveller.”_

_“Sir I’m about to--”_

_“Oh thank you so much for the help young wizard. All you need to do is get me a sandwich from a favorite shop of mine back in Marleybone. I’d go myself but I’m terribly busy.” Ryan had to stop themself from scoffing. Peake didn’t seem to be terribly busy. Just lazy. Ryan themself was busier than he was and Ryan was on a break from saving the spiral._

_“Mr. Peake I don’t think--”_

_“I assure you it’s no trouble.” There really was not getting out of performing this pompous twit’s errand was there. Ryan sighed and struggled to plaster on their best, ‘happy to do your errands’ smile. It looked like they might not make Christmas back at Wizard City after all._

* * *

Cori held up a spell card between two fingers and squinted at the decal of a clenched fist in complete and utter confusion.  
“What the hell is this supposed to do?”


	13. Chapter 13

“Oh! Malorn we almost forgot… What did you get?” Malorn looked up, startled by the question. He’d been zoning out a little all morning, content that his students were happy.

“Um, I don’t… I don’t know” He reached for the note with his name. Unlike the rest, it wasn’t attached to a box or bag. He opened the note and held it away from his face in order to get a proper look at Ryan’s atrocious handwriting. “Too big for me to bring all the way upstairs, left it outside. Probably not the best thing to leave out in the cold though so let’s pray you read this first.” Malorn bared his teeth in a guilty grimace and quickly stood, shoving the paper into a pocket in his robes. He stumbled down the stairs and over to the door, musing all the while on what Ryan could have gotten him that wouldn’t have fit through the door.

They’d clearly been all around the spiral getting the necromancers’ gifts, but if it was too big for Ryan to carry up the stairs then they couldn’t have gotten it from too far away. Maybe it was that rolling chalkboard he’d requested from Ambrose. It would have to be from Wizard City. Maybe though Ryan had learned the magic required to teleport large items (Malorn shuddered at the thought… magic wasn’t supposed to work like that, and he didn’t want to think about what Ryan would have to do to get that kind of power). If so then it could be anything… well anything awkward enough that Ryan couldn’t carry it up the stairs in order to surprise the necromancers on Christmas morning. Now that Malorn thought about it, all of the gifts from Ryan hadn’t been there the night before as he had assumed at first. Ryan must have teleported there in the middle of the night and left the gifts. Malorn felt a twinge of hurt at that. If Ryan had time to drop off their gifts then surely they could have stayed for the morning, or at least shaken them awake if they were forced to leave. He sighed and furrowed his brow, struggling to put it out of his mind. Ryan would probably be back in a few days and lessons could continue as they normally did… which is to say that lessons would continue to be sporadic.

Malorn pulled open the door of the classroom, expecting to find some large, unwrapped present with another note from Ryan.

There was no gift.

There was no note from Ryan.

Instead there was only the shivering form of Malorn’s favorite wayward necromancer, their teeth chattering and a smile gracing their face.

“Ryan?” Malorn called, too dumbstruck at their appearance to do much but hold onto the door in shock. Confused shouts of “Ryan?” echoed from the loft upstairs, and the rest of the necromancers thundered down the stairs to see the prodigal student return.

“Hi! Can… can I come in it’s really freaking cold.” Malorn stepped aside to allow Ryan into the room. Their smile faltered at the look on Malorn’s face, and they spread their arms,

“Happy to see me?”

“Of course Ry.” Malorn pulled the shorter necromancer into a tight hug, and immediately felt the cold that leeched off of them.

“I thought you would’ve opened the note s-sooner… I didn’t think I’d have to wait outside for so long.”

“Yeah… sorry about that. All your gifts have been opened.”

“Not all of them.” They pulled away from Malorn’s hug, and began to fish through the confines of their bag. Ryan pulled out a heavy book bound in black leather, and capped with silver on the corners. They handed it proudly to Malorn and he took the book. He cracked the spine, and began to flip through pages and pages of empty lined pages.

“I thought I could help you plan some lessons?”

“Absolutely.” Malorn agreed. The rest of the necromancers began to fill in around Ryan, and the group moved as one up the stairs to the warmth and security of the loft. They piled together amongst the ripped and ragged pieces of colorful paper, filled with a bone deep contentment.


End file.
